The South Alabama Land Trust (SALT) announces the return of its annual Gulf Coast Nature Expo, a free community event celebrating conservation, environmental education, and family fun. This year’s Expo will take place on Saturday, Oct. 4, 2025, from 9-2 p.m. at the picturesque Weeks Bay Plantation in Fairhope. 

This year’s Labor Day weekend was also the twentieth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. The almost 1400 lives that were lost, reduced from the original 1800 estimated in Mississippi and Louisiana, are a reminder that Mother Nature is undefeatable. Realizing that Labor Day is in the middle of prime storm season, it is hard not to recall the hurricanes that have been part of my life since childhood.

Having lived in Fairhope since 1977, before it was chic, I have seen many changes. Often, my husband and I talk about the old days and try to remember what was where in town. The lovely home at 63 South Church Street has been a special landmark for us for a long time, and now, as The Fairhope Inn, it is one of the jewels of Fairhope. 

If you haven't been by the big piece of property long known as "the Triangle" in a while, you're in for some surprises. It's now home to Flying Creek Nature Preserve, which is the newest sparkling jewel in Fairhope's shiny crown.

When Armand DeKeyser responded to our Scenic 98 Coastal Reader Survey and was chosen to receive a Scenic 98 coastal hat, I spoke to him on the phone. I learned, among other things, that he is the Board Chair for a nonprofit program called Shepherd’s Place. I then googled Shepherd’s Place to see what it is all about. It is a program that offers caregivers of cognitive-challenged family members a break from around-the-clock caregiving.

If you’ve ever attended a civic function on the Eastern Shore, you’ve probably run into Skip Jones. He may be the most civic-minded man I know. His interests run wide and deep. He is also an ‘Old Salt’, an endearing term for someone who knows their way around the waterfront.‍

Walking into the Fairhope Recreation Center Pool on a Tuesday morning during the Fairhope Area Swim Team, aka FAST practice, I am stimulated by the sights and sounds of approximately 350 kids in matching team swimsuits, swimming laps. There are eight lanes with coaches on each side, loudly giving instructions to swimmers aged 7 to 17 years.

On a recent Friday evening during the Fairhope Art Walk, Linda and I met a friend downtown to hear The Modern Eldorados. The band was playing on the sidewalk across the street from Pearl Seafood + Raw Bar, a small but popular restaurant that opened three and a half years ago in the space that used to be R Bistro. After a little while, we decided to settle in at the bar and ordered one of their specialty cocktails and a dozen oysters.